The Communal Battle between the Red and the Blue

Abstract

This chapter illustrates the complex issue of citizenship facing the ethnic Chinese as well as the raging competition between pro-Beijing and pro-Taipei factions in the diasporic community. By signing the 1955 Sino-Indonesian Dual Nationality Treaty, Beijing hoped to encourage the assimilation of the ethnic Chinese in Indonesia and clear the way for the future development of bilateral relations. The treaty marked two fundamental changes. First, Beijing announced that Chinese nationality could no longer be inherited indefinitely and unconditionally through the law of blood. Second, Jakarta no longer automatically recognized all local-born Chinese as Indonesian citizens. Instead, individuals had to take active legal action to acquire Indonesian citizenship if they desired to do so. Yet, due to misinformation, the shortage of legal services, and the inefficiency of Indonesian bureaucracy, hundreds of thousands of ethnic Chinese lost their Indonesian citizenship even though they planned to continue living in Indonesia. Moreover, despite Beijing calling upon the ethnic Chinese to “correct the deep-rooted feelings of racial superiority” and not to regard opting for Indonesian citizenship as “losing face,” many still purposefully repudiated Indonesian citizenship. The chapter then looks at how the pro-People's Republic of China bloc launched aggressive attacks against their pro-Republic of China rivals for control over Chinese-language media, civic associations, and Chinese-medium schools.